That Certain 'Something'
by Lauren9
Summary: *COMPLETE* L/L! Lorelai makes a decision about her wedding to Max that changes her life inevitably. Chapter two begins three months later...a time when someone becomes more than just a friend...
1. Get Me To the Church On Time...Actually,...

Author: Lauren  
  
Email: artista317@yahoo.com  
  
Pairing: L/L  
  
Summary: This takes place BEFORE Lorelai cancels on her and Max's wedding but after Luke gives her the chuppa. Lorelai makes a last minute decision about her wedding to Max that could change her life forever.  
  
Rating: I'm going to say PG 13, at the most…but it could be considered PG or even G.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, nor am I in connection with the people (Amy Sherman-Pallidino and whoever else) that do.  
  
Author's note: Yes, I know that Lorelai ended her and Max's relationship almost 6 months ago from when I'm writing this, but I recently thought of a nice ending that would sort of bring together Luke and Lorelai. Enjoy! Please review! (  
  
1 That Certain 'Something'  
  
2  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Part 1: Get Me to the Church on Time…Actually, Just Get Me to the Church…  
  
"Mom! Mom, it's almost ten and you have to get ready!" Rory yelled, running upstairs to Lorelai's room.  
  
"Five more minutes?" Lorelai asked, groggily.  
  
"I know the wedding isn't until four, but you have to get up!" She said, pulling the covers off Lorelai, who groaned in response.  
  
"Fine. Stay in bed. I mean, I have coffee downstairs for you, but if you'd rather stay here…"  
  
"Ugh! Coffee always wins. Sorry bed." She said, getting up and following Rory downstairs.  
  
__________  
  
"Stop it, Mom! It's fine. My dress is supposed to be like that!" Lorelai said, moving away from Emily. It was five hours later, the wedding set an hour from now. The entire town was invited and Taylor had offered the use of the square. Emily had agreed to have it there before Lorelai could say anything. The area was now lined with white plastic chairs, the gazebo held a harp and a piano that Max had arranged, there were yellow daisies at the end of each row of chairs, and, of course, Luke's chuppa was standing in the center of it all. Emily was now helping Lorelai get ready, as had been Rory, who had gone out for a minute to get her mother a final cup of coffee before the wedding.  
  
"Well, all right, Lorelai, but it's…it's positioned funny or something…"  
  
"It's fine!"  
  
"Fine." She took a step back and Lorelai turned to face her mother.  
  
"So how do I look?" She asked, twirling in front of her. Emily smiled. They hadn't always gotten along and Emily wasn't sure that the rift between them was reconcilable, but at this moment none of the past mattered. Her daughter was getting married to a man that made her unbelievably happy. Truly, that's all Emily believed she ever wanted for Lorelai—for her to be happy.  
  
"You look beautiful," she answered, quietly. "Are you nervous?"  
  
"A little."  
  
Emily reached out and smoothed her daughter's hair. "It'll pass." Stepping away from her, "so, is the Ice Man coming today?"  
  
"The Ice Who? Oh, you mean Luke. I think so. Why?"  
  
"I just thought that it might be hard for him to watch you getting married…"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Well, I mean you two obviously had something together. I know you deny it, but it was so obvious. At the hospital, and Rory's birthday…and the way you are with him…"  
  
"Luke and I are—and always have been—just friends. I don't know why that's so hard for everyone to realize and understand."  
  
"Max does make you happy, right?"  
  
"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly. Did you just ask if the man I'm marrying in less than half an hour makes me happy? Of course he does! Do you honestly think I'd marry someone that didn't—"  
  
Emily interrupted. "It was a simple question, Lorelai. I just don't want you to make a mistake."  
  
"And who is it that you could see me with instead? Christopher? Please don't tell me you aren't over that yet. We don't even know each other anymore…and if you say Luke…"  
  
What are you going to say, Lorelai? What if she was thinking Luke? What if she's right? Maybe there is something there that you've never opened your eyes to before, Lorelai thought to herself. Get a hold of yourself! You're getting married in an hour! You're going to be happy. You and Max and Rory are going to be a family. You will be Mrs. Max Medina… But, God, what if you're making a mistake? Why did she choose today of all days to make you see that there could be something between you and Luke? She thought of Luke, the way he looked at her, the way he'd been there for her, and for Rory. He's been there for Rory. He loves her like his own daughter and what if it's true that he loves you too? You can't do this! You can't think like this when the man you love, the man you're about to marry, is standing at the alter, waiting for you! But there's Luke. He could be 'the one.'  
  
And what did she mean by 'and the way you are with him?' How can everyone but you see this? It's been there all along! You can't do this! It wouldn't be fair. To you or Max…or Luke. You have to give it that chance.  
  
Was it ever right in the first place? Max proposed as a way to end a fight…and are you not supposed to feel something that says that you're making the right decision, that let's you know this is what is meant for your life? You mother tried on her wedding dress every night before her wedding. You haven't had the urge to once.  
  
Why does this have to be so hard?  
  
"Lorelai?"  
  
"Mom, I-I'm having second thoughts. I don't think I can do this."  
  
"I didn't mean to—"  
  
"I can't go through with this…you're right mom. This isn't what is meant for me." Lorelai could feel a lump growing in her throat. She was going to cry. The tears were threatening the rims of her eyes and the eye liner that lay there.  
  
"This wasn't because of what I said, was it? I just want you to be sure."  
  
"I'm not sure…" She was openly crying now, the mascara running down her cheeks. "I'm not sure about any of this, mom, partly because of what you said, but there's another part of me that knew all along that it wasn't right."  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"Because I didn't want to try on my wedding dress every night. Because he asked me to marry him as a way to end a fight, because he didn't know to send a thousand yellow daisies on his own…because I am finally seeing what was there from the very beginning."  
  
"Lorelai…"  
  
"I'm sorry I've disappointed you again. I'm sorry that this wedding will end up on your list of 'Things Lorelai's Managed to Screw Up.' I'm sorry." Lorelai looked away from her mother as she attempted to try her face with her hands.  
  
Emily shook her head. She moved towards Lorelai and awkwardly hugged her. Not knowing what to make of the sudden display of affection, it took her a minute to hug Emily back. "All I ever wanted was for you to be happy. Please don't think you've ever disappointed me. You haven't. I just wanted you to have kind of life I'd always dreamed for myself. For that, Lorelai, I am sorry."  
  
After a few moments, Emily left her daughter to inform the guests of Lorelai's decision. 


	2. The Beginning of Something New

That Certain Something  
  
Chapter 2: The Beginning of Something New  
  
Summary: L/L! This season hasn't really happened in the world where this fan fic takes place. Previously, (chapter 1) Lorelai decided not to marry Max when her mother suggested the possibility of Luke having feelings for her. This chapter—Lorelai asks Luke about Max. It isn't his answer that shocks her, it's what she, herself, does in response.  
  
Disclaimer: Still have no rights to anyone whatsoever, or the chuppa, or the fact that Lorelai and Max were ever together (if I did, they would have broken up completely the first time!).  
  
A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I love reading them! If you haven't reviewed yet, I'd love to hear from you too! Also, this chapter takes place three months after the wedding. Selected parts and/or sentences are taken from or derive from the actual show (Sookie says something that was in the 'Romeo and Juliet' episode which title I can't think of right now, etc)  
  
__________  
  
"Hey, Sookie. Coffee?" Lorelai asked, walking through the door to the kitchen at the Inn.  
  
"In the pot." She said, pointing, but not looking up. When she finished washing the strawberries she was holding she found a mug for Lorelai. "Sorry. I thought there was a mug there."  
  
"Thanks." Lorelai said, filling it.  
  
"So, what are you doing tonight?"  
  
"I think I'm going to hang with Luke."  
  
"Oh, really?" She asked, lifting her eyebrows and smirking.  
  
Lorelai threw her a look, "Yes. I told him I was sick of spending my Saturday nights alone and he asked me to come over."  
  
"Ooh…like a date?" Sookie giggled.  
  
"No! We're just going to hang out, play a few hands of poker…that kind of thing."  
  
"It's been three months, Lorelai. It's okay to want to date again."  
  
"I'm not sure that I want to get into a relationship with Luke…"  
  
"You don't want to see it, do you?"  
  
"See what?" Lorelai asked, defensively.  
  
"You don't want to see what is right there. You haven't *wanted* to see it. He *loves* you…he's loved you for the longest time. Don't you see how he looks at you? He looks out for you, too. You and Rory. You're everything to—"  
  
"Sookie," she interrupted.  
  
"Why won't you just give him a chance? Didn't you tell me that it was because of him that you didn't go through with the wedding?"  
  
"Uh…"  
  
"Isn't he the one that is always there to cheer you up, and is willing to drive you to the hospital when your father's sick, and puts Dean into a headlock because he hurt your daughter. It's *right there,* Lorelai. It'll always be right there. You just have to look in his eyes."  
  
__________  
  
"Hey." Lorelai said, walking through the diner door. She was curious if Sookie was right. She'd asked Rory what she thought and she had shrugged, saying that everyone knew there was something between them, even if they kept denying it.  
  
"Hey." He answered. He held out a paper cup of coffee. "I saw you coming in."  
  
"Ah. Thanks."  
  
"So, are you ready to have your ass kicked at poker?" He joked. She smiled.  
  
"I'd put money on that not happening."  
  
"But not your daily coffee?"  
  
"I'm not *that* good."  
  
He smiled as she drank her coffee slowly. She looked at him from the brim of her cup. His eyes were sparkling happily. He looked away quickly.  
  
"Let me just finish closing up."  
  
"Sure." She turned around on her stool and watched him carefully, thinking about what Sookie had said. He *had* always been there for her, he adored Rory, he helped her as often as he could, he'd made her a *chuppa* for her and a man she was sure he didn't even like. He'd also held her when she'd cried at the hospital, where Luke had brought her even though he'd had a diner full of customers, and again the day after the wedding when she'd cried because she'd thought she'd made a mistake. But did he love her?  
  
Lorelai wasn't positive that she even knew what love felt like anymore…well, the love between a man and a woman. She knew that with Max it hadn't been true love or it would have lasted forever. Maybe that was just a fairy tale. She didn't know that either.  
  
It was easier to believe that her was not in love with Luke than it was to believe that she was. They had been friends for what felt like forever and he had become a confidant of hers. She wouldn't know what to do without him, had that situation ever come up. She gave up marital bliss for the possibility of "something" with him. If only she could believe that those feelings could happen between them; that Luke could love her.  
  
Her eyes followed him into the back room. He had gotten himself a beer and the deck of cards. Lorelai was still savoring her coffee.  
  
"All right, five card stud. Jokers and deuces wild." He divided the poker chips, handing her half and then dealt the cards. "Ante."  
  
__________  
  
They played for close to two hours, when Lorelai finally said that she had to head home. Luke offered to walk her home and she had agreed. They walked slowly, talking about nothing in particular. When they reached her porch he turned to her.  
  
"I had a really good time tonight." Lorelai said, smiling.  
  
"Me too."  
  
"If you're ever willing to get rid of some more of your money, I'd be happy to play with you."  
  
"You didn't win *that* much."  
  
"Well, for sitting around drinking coffee and laughing with a good friend I think twenty five dollars is pretty good."  
  
"Yeah, well…" He shrugged, smiling. His eyes were sparkling again, when she looked into them, but he didn't turn away this time.  
  
"Can I ask you a question?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Did you like Max?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Did you like him?"  
  
"Truthfully?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"No. I…uh…I thought that he would hurt you. He did."  
  
"No, I stopped the wedding."  
  
"But it was because he didn't make you feel the way you wanted to feel." He said, quickly. Her response was just as fast. She wanted an honest answer. She didn't want to give him time to think.  
  
"How do I want to feel?"  
  
"Loved. Happy. Safe."  
  
"And where would I find that?"  
  
"With…" He paused. She knew that he had finally realized that he wasn't thinking about what he was saying. She had almost gotten him to say that he would give her that *something* that Max hadn't given her.  
  
Lorelai thought about the words she wanted to say next. Daringly, "With…you?"  
  
He didn't answer her right away. "I—" She didn't let him finish. Holding his gaze, she stepped closer to him and leaned her mouth against his. The kiss was light. She thought that he might pull back for a second. He didn't. He touched his hand to her cheek and ended the kiss. They didn't pull back right away; instead Luke rested his lips against hers though he didn't kiss her. She could feel his breath moving past her cheek, shakily. Suddenly, he kissed her again.  
  
His kiss was full of passion. She knew then that Sookie had been right about his feelings for her. Her knees grew weak and she wrapped her arms around his neck. He clutched her to him, drawing her close. She could feel his heart beating against her chest, the warmth of his body pressed against hers. Her heart leaped with every moment she spent in his arms, a feeling of warmth spread down her spine and through her body.  
  
Finally, he pulled back. He said, "I've wanted to do that for a long time."  
  
"I think I have, too."  
  
He kissed her a final time, softly, before he she hesitantly drew away from him.  
  
"Goodnight," she said quietly, a smile spreading slowly over her face. "I'll see you tomorrow?"  
  
He nodded. "Goodnight." 


	3. Daisies and Softball (Well, sort of…)

That Certain Something  
  
Chapter 3: Daisies and Softball (Well, sort of…)  
  
Summary: L/L! This season hasn't really happened in the world where this fan fic takes place. Previously, Lorelai decided not to marry Max when her mother suggested the possibility of Luke having feelings for her. After a game of poker, Luke walks Lorelai home. When they say goodnight, she asks Luke about Max, which turns out being the prelude to their first kiss. This chapter—Lorelai tells Rory about her and Luke's first kiss and Luke and Lorelai go on their first date.  
  
Disclaimer: Still have no rights to anyone whatsoever…  
  
A/N: Thanks again for the reviews! I love reading them! :)  
  
__________  
  
Rory was in her room when Lorelai came home. She had fallen asleep less than an hour before and Lorelai easy woke her by laying down next to her.  
  
"Mom? What time is it?" Rory asked, her voice hoarse from sleep.  
  
"I don't know…eleven, midnight?"  
  
"What—is something wrong?"  
  
"We kissed." Lorelai was beaming.  
  
"Who kissed?"  
  
"Me and Luke."  
  
Rory sat up, surprised. "You and Luke?"  
  
Lorelai nodded then suddenly looked concerned. "Oh, sweetie, that doesn't bother you, does it?"  
  
"No, not at all. I'm happy that you guys finally got together," she grinned and hugged her mother. "So, how did it happen?"  
  
"Well, he walked me home after we finished playing poker and we were talking. Suddenly, we were sort of talking about 'us,' but not really. It started with him disliking Max and…and then we just kissed."  
  
"He initiated it?"  
  
"No, I did." She was still smiling. "Then he kind of pulled away for a minute and then he kissed me again. It was just so…I can't even describe it. It was…incredible…and sweet…and wonderful…and I never wanted to end."  
  
"Wow."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"You know the entire town will be talking about you in the morning."  
  
"I know."  
  
"And?"  
  
"I'm just so happy right now, I don't even care."  
  
Rory smiled. "So you were right about canceling the wedding?"  
  
"I think so. I really do."  
  
__________  
  
"Hey you," Lorelai said, walking into the diner. The only other person in the diner was leaving with his coffee to-go.  
  
"Hey." He said, smiling. He handed her a mug of coffee. "Uh…last night…"  
  
"…Was unbelievable," she finished for him. He sighed, smiling.  
  
"I'm happy that you feel the same way." He paused. "I was…uh…wondering if maybe you'd want to go out to dinner tomorrow night."  
  
"I'd love to."  
  
"Great. Seven?"  
  
"Sure." She smiled and looked at her watch. "I have to get to the Inn. See you tomorrow night." She stood then awkwardly leaned over the counter and kissed his cheek. He touched her chin so she wouldn't pull away and kissed her lips softly.  
  
"Bye." She smiled and he watched her leave then went back to wiping down the counters.  
  
__________  
  
The next night, Luke walked up to her door, nervously. When she opened it, he saw her look of surprise at his clothes—he wasn't in plaid. In fact, he was wearing the pants and belt she'd bought him and a white button-down shirt, the top button open. His baseball cap was also left at home.  
  
She called to Rory to tell her that she was leaving then stepped outside. He was thinking how beautiful she looked as they walked. She was wearing a short black dress with an low cut square neckline. When they reached the driveway he handed her the single daisy he'd been carrying.  
  
"I figured that yellow daisies would make you think of…well, I decided to bring white."  
  
"Thank you." She twirled it between her thumb and forefinger for a minute before looking up at him again. "So, where are we going for dinner?" She looked around for his truck.  
  
"It's in walking distance."  
  
"You're taking me to Al's?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Your diner?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Then where?"  
  
"You'll see." Luke smirked and they began walking.  
  
__________  
  
"Close your eyes." He said, stopping.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Close your eyes." He persisted as he took out a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped it around her head.  
  
"I thought you found the tradition of handkerchiefs revolting."  
  
"Normally, I do, but this one is clean and I needed it because I know you and you wouldn't have kept your eyes closed."  
  
"I have very good reason not to, considering I'm wearing three-inch heels." He slid one hand in hers and put his other hand on her back.  
  
"It's not too far."  
  
"I'm not sure I trust you. You are the man that constantly refuses to give me my liquid version of air."  
  
"And yet you always manage to get it…"  
  
"That's because you think I'm pretty…and you want to kiss me…"  
  
"You're arrogant, you know that?"  
  
"No, just self-assured." She smiled.  
  
"All right, we're here." He said, after a moment. He slowly took of the blindfold. Lorelai couldn't believe what she saw.  
  
Before her, on the bridge that crossed the pond (A/N: the one Rory and Jess had the picnic on and the one from which Luke pushed Jess into the pond…), Luke had laid a white sheet on which he'd set two plates of food (hers was a cheeseburger and fries, his tofu and vegetables), candles, two mugs (she was sure one was coffee and the other tea), and a vase filled with more daisies.  
  
"Oh, Luke…I can't believe you did this."  
  
"Yeah, well…" They sat down on the bridge, Lorelai's feet hanging over the edge, Luke facing her. They talked and laughed while they ate. Eventually he moved next to her and kissed her softly. She lightly touched his face with her fingertips as they withdrew from each other. He stood and took her hand. "Come on, there's one more place I want to take you."  
  
__________  
  
"The baseball field?"  
  
"You said you've never played before. I want to teach you how to play." Luke answered, taking a softball and a bat out of the picnic basket he was carrying.  
  
"You're going to teach me how to play baseball?" She asked, her eyebrow lifting slightly.  
  
"Well, softball…and I'll probably only teach you how to hit it."  
  
"Fine, but if someone gets hurt, it's not my fault. I warned you." He smiled. "Am I holding this right?" Lorelai asked, lifting the bat in two hands and positioning if over her right shoulder.  
  
"Uh…not quite. Move it more to the left…no, your other left…more…more…and now move your hands…" He directed. She tried to follow his instructions, but he saw that he couldn't tell her how to hold it. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, putting his hands on top of hers and re-positioning the bat.  
  
"Okay. Now, to hit it, you just swing like…" he demonstrated, slowly. She looked over her shoulder at him.  
  
"Does everyone you teach get taught quite like this?" Lorelai smirked.  
  
"No. Only the students I like." He kissed the side of her neck softly then moved to her shoulder, then her lips.  
  
"I really don't think, at this rate, I'm going to learn very much about baseball." She murmured between kisses. She dropped the bat and turned in his arms.  
  
__________  
  
A/N: I know this is a random place to leave off at, but I *really* need to get some stuff done tonight (Standardized testing is inevitable on the road to college and I need to still sign up for my subject tests), so I thought I'd finish this chapter here. The next chapter should be up between now and next week…we'll see where I'm at with things…Also, please review! The button is right there (below)…yup, on the left. Click it. Great, thanks! :) 


	4. An Exception to Every Rule

That Certain Something  
  
Chapter 4: An Exception to Every Rule  
  
Summary: L/L! This season hasn't really happened in the world where this fan fic takes place. Previously, Lorelai decided not to marry Max when her mother suggested the possibility of Luke having feelings for her. After a game of poker, Luke walks Lorelai home. When they say goodnight, she asks Luke about Max, which turns out being the prelude to their first kiss. Lorelai told Rory about her and Luke's first kiss and Luke and Lorelai went on their first date. Also, in at least this chapter, Jess does not yet exist. If you want Jess, read my other fan fic: "Those Three Little Words."  
  
Disclaimer: Still have no rights to anyone/anything whatsoever…  
  
A/N: Thanks again for the reviews! I love reading them! :) This chapter has an R rating because I get somewhat in detail with a scene of Luke and Lorelai rendezvousing, but it's not quite NC-17 (It's as graphic as a fiction novel typically gets. In a bookstore, if this was a book, it would be placed with Fiction rather than Romance—it is *not* Danielle Steel kind of graphic). Also, I don't believe in love at first sight, but it's in here, more for effect than anything.  
  
__________  
  
Luke and Lorelai walked back towards the diner. Luke had given up trying to teach her how to play softball, especially since she learned that whenever she "forgot" how to use the bat Luke would "help" her by showing her how to hold it. Then she would always sneak a kiss and eventually they just decided to give up on it all together.  
  
As they walked, Lorelai looped her arm through his and sort of leaned against his shoulder. He smiled. "Tired?"  
  
"Me? Never. I drink too much coffee to ever get tired." She yawned.  
  
"Do you think Rory would be okay with you spending the night at my apartment?" Luke smirked.  
  
"Luke!" She playfully slapped his arm and looked at him in mock surprise. "I am not someone who sleeps with their date the first time they go out." They reached the door and Luke unlinked their arms so he could unlock it. His face, as she spoke, had turned a bright red that was now slowly fading. When they got inside and he had re-locked the door, she quietly said, "No, I don't think that Rory would mind." She moved closer to him and kissed the edge of his mouth.  
  
"I thought you—" She interrupted him by gently kissing his bottom lip. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him so he could kiss her fully.  
  
"We've known each other for like ten years. You serve me coffee every day. And though that is my rule and this is, technically, our first date, I think the exception applies."  
  
"Really?" He asked, grinning again. She nodded and kissed him, passionately. "You're serious?"  
  
"Yes, Burger Boy. I wouldn't lie to you unless I gained something by doing so." He kissed the side of her neck as she spoke and she smiled, letting a moan escape from her lips.  
  
Luke pulled away from her and, holding her hand, made his way up the stairs. She smiled as they walked towards his bedroom. Within a moment of entering, he pulled her into another embrace.  
  
"Hmm…" she smiled, kissing his skin. His hands slid beneath her dress.  
  
"Did I tell you already that you look beautiful tonight?" He asked, moving just far enough away to see her face.  
  
"Not in the last half hour, no."  
  
"Then let me make that clear. You look beautiful."  
  
"So do you. Handsome, I mean."  
  
He searched her eyes. "I love your eyes." Her smile grew and she kissed him.  
  
"Enough idle chat." He ravaged her mouth with his, letting his tongue slowly cross the threshold of her lips. She moaned again as he moved her hair away from her neck with one hand and slowly unzipped her dress with the other. She moved to step out of it as it fell around her ankles and she reached for his shirt. She slid one hand into his open collar, letting her hand touch his bare chest. She moved her hand across his shoulder and across the back of his neck. He kissed the spot where her neck met her jaw. The buttons of his shirt slowly popped open as she moved her hand back to his chest and let it travel across the front of his body, down his stomach, ending where the waist of his pants began. She then removed that article of clothing, tossing it to the floor by her now-crumpled dress and high-heeled shoes.  
  
"I love you," Luke murmured into her hair and neck after a while. "I think I've loved you since the moment you first walked into the diner."  
  
She drew so she could see him clearly. She didn't answer him, and he was momentarily stung by her silence. And then he sensed that she was trying to speak, but couldn't. He raised his hand to the slip she was still wearing and gently let his fingers travel the curve of her side, her rib cage to her leg. Suddenly, nervousness sunk in. He hadn't been with a woman since Rachel and there was this odd sensation that he began to feel—a mix of fear, almost, and happiness. This was Lorelai. He knew her. He loved her. He knew that them being together was right. He knew that she was happy to, he could tell from her eyes, the eyes the moment he'd seen he'd fallen in love with.  
  
"Lorelai?" He asked. She still hadn't responded. "Say something. Anything."  
  
Lorelai recalled her mother's words from Rory's birthday party. The way, Emily had said, Luke looked at Lorelai like she was going to give him a lap dance and how Emily thought that Lorelai entertained herself with the same idea. She smiled. She should have known at that moment what had been staring her right in the face for so long.  
  
"What?" He asked when she smiled.  
  
"I just don't know what to say. I mean, I could go all 'Friends' and be like Emily to Ross and say 'Thank You,' but that wasn't really appropriate then and isn't really appropriate now, I don't think."  
  
"Probably not."  
  
"I—God, Luke, I…" she stuttered. "I—"  
  
Luke touched her mouth with his fingertip. "You don't have to say anything. I guess I just wanted you to know." His voice was less than a whisper and he lowered his lips to the skin of her throat. He rested his face there, inhaling her scent, one that reminded him of roses in the spring after it rained, and she hugged him to her.  
  
Her mind drifted to what Sookie had told her. Luke *was* in love with her. She knew, somewhere deep inside, that he had that *something* Max and Christopher had been missing that had kept her from finally ending up with one of them.  
  
"Luke?"  
  
"Hmm?" He kissed a trail from her neck to her cheek, to her lips, and finally to her forehead where he stopped to let her speak.  
  
"You were the reason I didn't marry Max."  
  
"I'm sorry, what?"  
  
"My mom said that there was something between you and I. I didn't want to risk never giving *us* a chance." She kissed the corner of his mouth. "She said she didn't want me to make a mistake. I would have if I had married him.  
  
"Luke," she continued. "You're the one for me. You're the one I'm supposed to marry, to have children with, to grow old with, the man who makes me happier than I've ever been before. It was you all along, wasn't it?"  
  
He smiled. "I guess so."  
  
"I love you." She said, finally. Lorelai didn't know the last time she'd said those words to a man and actually meant them. Sure, she believed that she meant them when she'd said them to Max, but now she knew that there was something else, something Luke had that no other man would have. To think, all along that certain *something* was right there.  
  
__________  
  
A/N: The End! I hope you enjoyed it. And now I'm going to plug my other fanfics so you can read more about Luke and Lorelai (they are definitely *the* best couple on the show, in my opinion, if you couldn't tell by the fan fics I write). Check out: "Those Three Little Words" (spoiler story through the Season II finale) and "Don't Go Away" (a sad story of angst and realization). And review!! 


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